Stockinette Hats

Inspired originally by the beautiful no-sew hats used by Utah SHARE, many bereavement organizations have been making these wonderful treasures for angel families around the world, including us! These are the only hats Teeny Tears endorses to go with any of our bereavement clothing items. Below is our tutorial. You can also download a digital PDF file of the tutorial here: PDF Stockinette Hat Tutorial

Please read this entire page before embarking on a hat-making project!Scroll to the bottom for Stockinette Ordering Information.

These little stockinette hats are cute, easy, and quick to make for volunteers of all ages! They lack seams that can damage fragile skin and stretch to accommodate varying head sizes, making it very easy for hospital staff to dress these special angel babies. We donate 2 hats per family so that one may stay with the baby and the other may be kept by the family in a memory box. Simple pastel ribbons and white ribbons are preferred.

Fold cut stockinette piece in half, insert thumb into one side of folded stockinette, hold other side with other fingers.

With opposite hand grab folded edge where thumb is placed and pull it over to the opposite side where other fingers are. Fold Like you are folding a pair of socks. Pull raw edges together and even out.

You should have a raw edge and one that is finished off like pictured on the right.

Next turn hat upright and gather the fabric at the top of hat. Secure with clear small hair elastic. Use the width of your thumb on the 3" and 4" hats as a good guide on how much space to leave at the top of the hat, and a little smaller than that on the 2" hats. We do not want the elastic to be really low, nor do we want it dangling off the top. Please do not use colored elastics or loom bands. (Alternatively, you can use a clothespin to hold the fabric together before ribboning instead of using clear elastics!)

Cut ribbon, at an angle to prevent fraying. 6 inches is a great RIBBON length for the medium and large hats. 6 inches is a great RIBBON length to create the smallest hats initially, but the ribbon will need to be trimmed down after tying to be more size-appropriate. But we still recommend initially using 6 inch ribbon because they are easier to tie.

Add your ribbon to the top of the hats and fold up the brim. Tie the ribbon in a square knot. Be sure to trim the ribbon at an angle to prevent fraying. We do not accept hats with any additional embellishments at our headquarters and strongly recommend against using embellishments.

***Please remember to donate 2 identically matching hats per family so that one may stay with the baby and the other may be kept by the family in a memory box.

Ordering Information for Stockinette

Synthetic is white. **Most prefer the synthetic/white stockinette**

Cotton is beige.

We use 4MDMedical.com and MedOfficeDirect.com to order easily at very competitive pricing. They also have fantastic shipping rates and customer service. Here is a direct link to their stockinette options: 4MDMedical Stockinette and MedOfficeDirect Stockinette